Patience
by SimplenSweet
Summary: 1st story! Kairi is still waiting for Sora and Riku, who are doing everything they can to get back to her. Cliche, I know . RikuKairi with a lil SoraKairi. K for right now, T for later chapters. ON HIATUS.
1. Prologue

Hello and welcome to my first posted story. XD I've never really gotten any feedback from stories I haven't submitted, so R&R would really be appreciated. Thank you! And if you find you like my writing, I am open to suggestions for new stories as well. 

Disclaimer: I do not, unfortunately, own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters. They belong to Square Enix and Disney, though I'm hoping someday soon they'd be willing to sell everything to me…..

Chapter 1: Prologue 

The midnight sky shone and lit for a moment as a star was illuminated as it fell to the earth. Brilliant sapphires gazed up in time to watch the seemingly slow decline as it sank below the horizon, and from these sapphires, tears began to make their descent down the girl's lonesome face.

Kairi looked away from the horizon and then quickly glanced down at her shoes, not wanting to think about the stars and what lay beyond her world. Vibrant red locks slid from behind her ear as she brought her gentle hands to the smooth, pale skin of her cheerless face.

She had gone there too many times before, and did not want to bring herself through it again. They were gone, she didn't know if they were ever coming back, and that was the end of it. No use dwelling on it.

The fifteen-year old raised herself gently from the cool white sand and brushed her skirt off. She slowly walked back to her small beach house, where she had lived as long as she could remember, though her two best friends had always been there before.

Even though she had come to this island, not knowing who she was, Sora and Riku had been befriended her and made her feel at home, and gave her her own memories to hold on to. Her lips slowly raised in a smile at the thought.

Opening the door silently, Kairi turned and looked out to the sea once again, this time touching her slender fingers gently to her lips and blowing a kiss towards the now glowing horizon.

"I love you," she said simply, as she closed her eyes while a tear crept down her chin, and she shut the door quietly behind her.

Very short, I know, but I just wanted to know how I was doing before getting too into it o.O I think I'm gunna make this either Riku/Kairi or maybe a Sora/Kairi, or even a lil bit of both. Thank you XD


	2. Memories

Hello and welcome to the second chapter of my first story. I'm pretty sure I'm going in the direction of a Riku/Kairi, cause to be honest, I like the pairing more than Sora/Kairi (ducks so noone throws food at her) but there will be some Sora/Kairi in there as well, it just won't be the main couple. I'm gunna skip chapters for everyone's POV, so next chappie is Riku (hehe my fav). I just whipped this out in like 2 hours, so I'm crossing my fingers it won't suck too bad >. 

And thank you to **sephyandme**, who at the moment seems to be my only reviewer (cries). This chapter is dedicated to you!

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts and its characters belong to Square Enix and Disney, not to me (cries again).

Chapter 2: Memories

A blinding light seared through his eyelids as Sora raised his head in surprise. Feeling the back of his head, he turned to look at his unfamiliar surroundings. Stacks and stacks of dirty, ancient looking books in a small, messy room surrounded him.

Shivering slightly, Sora jumped down from his perch atop a creaky wooden table.

"Shouldn't I know this place? I… I can't… remember…"

"Why yes, you should, seeing as how you've been here many times before," came an accented voice from the doorway.

Sora quickly sprang to life; gripping his keyblade and spinning to face his opponent.

"Ahh...ah…umm…" Still tightly clutching the Oathkeeper, Sora babbled on for loss of words as to who the person standing before him was.

"Merlin."

"Merlin?" The keyblade dropped to Sora's side and hung limply. _This old man can't be much of a threat, wherever I am, and whoever he is._

"Yes, dear boy. Your noggin took quite the knocking, didn't it?" Chuckled the old wizard.

"What are you talking about?"

Merlin began to slowly circle Sora, making the boy somewhat nervous, and again chuckled to himself.

"Well, I wouldn't expect you to remember anything after that little incident, no." Merlin clicked his tongue disapprovingly. "What with all of that darkness business. Rubbish, all of it. You're lucky you're still alive, you know that?"

"I'm sorry sir, but don't understand." The boy felt extremely stupid simply standing there and not knowing anything, even who he was.

"No, of course not. Sit down, boy."

Sora spun to look behind him just in time to fall into the outstretched arms of an old recliner, as it had scooted towards him a few seconds before. Merlin slowly took to his own worn-down armchair.

Choosing to ignore the first thought of "_What the hell?"_ that came to his mind, Sora instead opted to say, "Excuse me, uhh, Merlin sir, but uhh, would you please explain to me-"

"Yes, yes, of course," Merlin impatiently cut the boy off. Clearing his throat deeply, the wizard started, "Well, let's get to it, shall we?"

A loud gulp was heard from Sora's throat as Merlin pointed and whirled his wooden stick of some sort at Sora's head, nearly knocking it into his skull.

And then, it was initiated. Loudly, and enthusiastically.

Incomprehensible language began spilling from the open mouth of the aged man in blue, sending multicolored sparks and swirls from the tip of his wand. Greens and blues, reds and yellows, and every color imaginable came pouring into the air and directly towards Sora.

Suddenly feeling dizziness and nausea take him over, Sora slid back onto the table behind him where he had awoken with a small _bump._

"…I…I..." muttered Sora slowly watching as the room began picking up speed as it spun; his head going along with the rhythm as he shut his pounding eyelids harshly. Memories.

The keyblade master's head swam through the mass of reminiscences before him, though his eyes were still closed. He could still hear the loud chanting of the wizard, though it was distant over the buzzing of his own mind.

Words and fragments began rushing through his head, speeding up and becoming more and more with every passing second.

_Sora...Riku...Kairi...The darkness...Keyblade master...Her heart..._

Everything, faster and faster.

_Donald...Goofy...Hollow Bastion...The end of the world...Love...Kairi...Kairi...KAIRI_

Sora sat straight up, whipping his head around in every direction. Finally opening his eyes, he only saw Merlin, who took him in with his own eyes with a look of sadness.

"If you wantto see your friends again,then you've got to finish what you've started, boy."

"I know what I've got to do." Sora slid from the table and walked towards the door, and brushing past Merlin, he said to himself, "Kairi needs me, I've got to get back to her." With that, Sora stepped out the door and glided off into Traverse Town without another word.

"Be careful, boy. You're not the only one looking for her." Merlin sat in silence for a long time after that, only rising to make some tea, and then going to bed to dream dreams that only a wizard could dream.

Well, I'd say that's quite a bit longer than the last chapter, but my 3rd chapter is even longer (yes, I finished it first cause I liked it more :P). Please review, and constructive criticism and suggestions areappreciated, but no flames, please.


	3. Visions

Third chapter up, finally, after so much time waiting! (my sense of humor and sarcasm need some work apparently) Well, thank you to those who have reviewed so far, I really appreciate it :D Mainly Riku/Kairi with bits of Sora/Kairi, and rated T for later chapters, K-K+ for the first few chapters. Thank you, and adieu for now.

**Chapter 3: Visions **

The limp piece of cloth slowly slid from his grasp and fell to the floor. Riku bent slightly in order to return his blindfold to his pocket, where it had stayed since his last vision.

"_If only you could see me. If only you could know that I'm still looking for you. If only you could realize that I still love you. If only..." _Riku's thoughts halted as he felt the presence of someone else in the grand hall where he resided for the moment.

"You really shouldn't sneak up on people when they're alone. I hope you realize being a king doesn't give you the right to waltz in on other people's thoughts." He snarled somewhat viciously. He was not in the mood. He was never in the mood, anymore.

"Well then you'll have to excuse the intrusion, because I have news that I know you will want to hear, sir." The small, squeaky voice of the mouse king was unafraid and seemingly used to his harsh treatment and lack of respect from the silver haired teenager before him. "You do still care about your friends, do you not?"

Anger immediately boiled within Riku's heart as he swiftly and gracefully leaped from his perch to land inches from the king's unmoving figure as he looked down at the regal mouse.

"Don't you even dare to question my loyalties. You know very well my position on the matter, and I will not take your pathetic excuse for sarcasm lightly. Stay away from me and anything that has to do with me."

"As you like, though I wouldn't be worried about yourself if I were you." The much smaller figure continued to keep his cool disposition and his countenance remained cheery as the dark figure before him barked his wishes.

King Mickey turned away from the man threatening him as he placed his black hood over his large ears and began to descend the grand staircase slowly, almost tripping over his oversized robes on the way down.

It was at the moment when the king turned again to face the boy that Riku had yet another dream or vision, this time of Kairi.

_A bright light flashed throughout his mind, and was quickly followed by the sight of the beach where he grew up, playing with his friends. Destiny Islands._

_Riku took a step, and realizing that he could walk throughout his vision, strode towards the islet that was home to the paupo tree. His footsteps were light, but his heart became heavy at the sight before him._

_Kairi._

_The weeping girl that lay infront of his boots was holding her small hands over her ears, and shaking her head indiscriminately. Her beautiful red hair fell and enveloped the sweet face that Riku knew lay underneath. She wept silently._

_Without his consent, his body automatically knelt and came to his knees as he placed his much larger hand on her frail and slightly shaking one. She did not lift her head, or show any sign of acknowledgment at all._

_Riku lifted her forehead gently as he slowly lowered his lips and brushed them lightly against it. To this, the small girl let her indigo eyes drift towards his aquamarine ones only for a second, before she let out a whisper of "I…I love you, Riku. Please… please… don't let him-" and then she shed one last tear before Riku felt her body become transparent and evaporate into the air around him._

_Grasping nothing, the strong hands of the teen were rolled into fists as he felt the darkness returning to his heart._

"_Whoever is trying to hurt you Kairi, I won't let him." He began to whisper small things to himself, until he felt the need to scream this._

"_Whoever it is that wants to take you away from me, I won't let them!" and then the last part was whispered. "Even if it means fighting… my best friend." Riku was left to suppurate by himself, as the sun dipped below the horizon, and everything went dark._

Riku jumped up from the chair that he had collapsed into and immediately fell to the harshly cold marble floor.

"You know, I was just going to inform you of the matter of your friend, and you go and black out on me. That really isn't polite."

"Fine, tell me what it is you wanted to tell me and get out of my sight, mouse."

The king proceeded to shuffle his large feet before continuing. "You know I care about you all, and I didn't mean to intrude into your personal life. And I-"

Riku quickly cut the king off. "This has something to do with Kairi, doesn't it." Somehow, he knew it was Kairi. He held his head expecting the worst and again clenched his fist as though it would comfort him from the blow.

"Kairi is dying."

Micky walked through the large open doors the way he came in and began to shut them with some difficulty, but then stopped to speak for the last time."You have to go to her. It's the only way to save her."

A boom echoed throughout the room as the huge door was closed.

The only thing you could see in the dim lighting of the grand hall was long silver hair, dripping over the broad, dark shoulders of the once light boy. And the only thing you could hear were the great sobs that racked the boys muscular body, making him seem again like the small and innocent boy he had once been.

Woooh that was a strange ending, I just wasn't quite sure how to cut it off. EVry corny, I know, haha. R&R please, and thank you to those who have already. The next chapter hasn't been started like the others had, so don't expect another 2-day update like these :P Also, I don't know whether I should make the next chapter a Kairi chapter or just skip to Sora. Input would be great on that, too. Thank you guys so much, constructive critcism welcome, and no flames please. SimplenSweet


	4. Forgotten

Sooooo back with the next chapter. This will be a Kairi chapter, since I'm skipping from char. to char. Thanks to the very,_ very _few reviewers (cries), especially sephyandme. I need more reviews people!

I do not own Kingdom Hearts or its characters, they belong to Square Enix and Disney.

On with my least favorite chapter! (Self loathing/pity annoys me, so I, not quite sure why I wrote this, haha).

**Chapter 4: Forgotten**

"Honey, don't you want to come out of your room? It's time for dinner."

Kairi sat in silence with her knees up against her somewhat small chest as she stared out of her open window, while the breeze gently rustled her smooth hair. She had been curled up in a ball on her small twin-sized bed for hours, though to Kairi, it seemed like much longer.

"Kairi, sweety, please come downstairs." Her mother always had to plead with her to coax her out of her room. She was secretly amazed that her mother put up with her. She would have gone out of her mind in annoyance if her daughter had ignored her for over a year, only moping, never with a smile on her face. Sometimes she was surprised her mother didn't hit her. Sometimes she wished she would.

There was a silence as Kairi's mother gave up hope of trying to get her daughter to come eat dinner with the rest of the family. Kairi loosened her grip on her knees slightly as she gave a disappointed snort towards the thought of her mother. Her false mother.

The red head suddenly felt the overwhelming feeling of loneliness. _"Why hadn't her mother tried harder to get her spirits up? Why had she just given up? Did she not care enough about her to bother?"_

There was an abrupt change in Kairi's attitude as she threw the nearest object she could reach out the window. The ragged hand-sewn doll flashed by the windowsill, and was gone. Kairi shut her eyes tightly as she stood up and strode across the carpet towards the open window and closed it with a loud _thud_, not looking for the point where the doll had landed. With another, lighter _thud_, she plopped down on the soft carpet.

_"Why does this have to happen to me? Why does nobody love me? Why can't I be happy?"_ Kairi was swirling in her own self pity, which she only hoped would leave her be. She was lying to herself, blaming her hurt on her mother now. Her mother didn't deserve it. She needed to take responsibility for her own feelings.

The small-framed girl rose from her kneeling position as she tried to sort out her feelings. She walked the length of her room once again and decided on her bed as her next seat, not being able to sit still.

_"This isn't really about me. Noone should have to feel sorry for me. I'm upset about Sora and Riku, but it's only because I'm not with them. What about how they're feeling? They might be in some awful place, hurt, and even more alone than I feel. I'm just being selfish wanting them with me, when I should really be worried about them themselves."_

Kairi felt more fresh tears tug at the corners of her swolen, red eyes. She really did need to stop being so selfish.

Taking a standing position and sluggishly moving towards the door, she made her way down the stairs with difficulty with her blurred vision. Entering the kitchen, Kairi saw her mother and father (_"not fake" _she thought) rise from the table and their dinner upon seeing their daughter with her muddled countenance.

"Honey, are you alright?"

"I...I..." Kairi could not finish her sentence as she felt the floor and walls spinning away from her. Feeling her body temperature rise, she grasped blindly at anything that could hold her up, but failed miserably as she collapsed and fell to the ground with the third and heaviest _thud_ of the night.

And the last thing she saw was his face...

Ok, I know, I know, Kairi's very, **_very _**annoying in this chapter, but I just kinda wanted to get her feelings across and to tell you the truth, _fill in space._ And I know that this story is starting off incredibly slow, but for next chapter I'll make Sora do... something... hehe... I'm not very good at thinking up things ahead of time.

Please, _Please_ R&R, I would really appreciate it. Constructive criticism is welcome, but please, no pointless flames. Come on, it only takes a few seconds. I knoooow you want to.


	5. Problems

Hello everybody, fifth chapter is up. I just finished my huge history project, so I figured I'd write this as a lil present to myself. So, I know that this is a lil later than hoped, cause I didn't finish the chapter before I went away for the weekend (Hehe, sorry, mind block). Heh-hem, anyway, on with the disclaimer and such things.

I do not own Kingdom Hearts or its characters. They belong to Square Enix and Disney.

Chapter 5: Problems 

"I can't believe I wasted all that time just…just… sitting there. I could have been going to see her. I…I…"

Gravity-defying chocolate hair rustled as the rough wind brushed by it. Gliding through the air at a speed never before achieved, Sora raced towards the entrance to the second district of Traverse Town. (I haven't played in awhile so feel free to correct me if I get the districts or something messed up)

Grasping the mammoth door handles and pulling the door open with ease, the fifteen-year old continued to glide on through straight towards his destination: The hotel.

"_I have to speak to Leon. Everybody else there can only help, right?"_

Finally landing on his two large feet at the foot of the hotel, Sora entered the lobby and began sprinting down the halls. Almost running straight through the door of peeling green paint, Sora burst into the Green Room, knocking Yuffie off her feet and squarely onto her back.

"Where's the fire?" Yuffie began grumbling to herself in annoyance as she patted her sore bottom while slowly standing up.

"Where's Leon?" Sora rushed out, out of breath. "Oh, sorry Yuffie."

Aerith stepped forward as the younger girl made a small _humph _noise. "He's out training. What's the matter Sora?"

"I just… need to talk to him. What about Cloud? Cid?"

"Ooooh, boy stuff, hmm?" Yuffie teased attempting to get Sora back for knocking her over.

"I'm sorry Sora, but Cloud went back to the Coliseum yesterday to sort out some things. Cid should be at the Accessory Shop, though. Really, whatever it is, please don't hesitate to talk to us." Aerith's voice was quiet, yet strong and hopeful.

Yuffie decided to join in too. "Yeah, you know us giiirls are the best people to talk to about all your problems. Come on, what's up?"

"I… well, I need to know how I can get back to Destiny Islands so that I can see…uh, well… Kairi." Sora blushed slightly as he bit back what he really wanted to ask, and let out a small discussion topic instead. They took the bait.

"Awww, well, Cid can take care of the gummi ship enhancements, but what's this matter with Kairi, huh?" Yuffie was already taunting him with her playful voice, and he hadn't gotten to the subject he'd meant to ask in the first place yet.

"Well, it's just that…" Sora decided to bite the bullet. "You don't think she'll… think less of me now that I've been away so long, do you?" There, that was a nice, subtle way to put it. Not too out in the open. Not revealing anything to personal. Keeping it casual. They won't suspect a thing.

"Whaaaat? That's crazy! She'd be pretty loopy to forget about you so soon! Come on Sora! Aren't guys supposed to be known for their ENOURMOUS egos? What's with these self esteem issues, here?" Yuffie had really gotten into this. To tell the truth, Sora backed off a little, slightly fearing the shorthaired ninja.

"Sora, she loves you. You know that. She's waiting for you." The corners of Aerith's lips tilted up into a small smile as she guessed correctly as to what Sora was really worried about. It's not that he was afraid that that she'd forgotten about him… it was more that he needed to know that she loved him. Wait, did that make any sense at all? Was that even a difference?

"What the hell are you smiling about?" Sora realized too late that Yuffie had spied him making strange and contorted faces while thinking about Kairi. Although he wouldn't have exactly called it a smile, more like a twisted puzzlement. Then again, he couldn't actually see his own face.

She must still love him. Kairi wasn't the type of person to just give up on him.

"Wait a minute, did Kairi ever actually tell me that she loved me? Who am I to assume? Oh, I Don't know… I'm just doubting her and making it harder on myself. Yeah, I've got nothing to worry about. She loves me. She's got to love me."

Sora suddenly felt his intense feelings flooding throughout his body, into his arms and legs, fingers and toes. It was a rush. He was sure that his look of bewilderment had left his older face as it was replaced by one of sheer determination. Sora stormed out the door of the green room and glided out of the hotel, followed by surprised shouts from both Yuffie and Aerith.

The keyblade master was going to find his princess. He needed to find Cid, first.

Okie… weird ending as always. Weird chapter that has no meaning, as always. I don't really know when my next chapter will be out, so I'm sorry I don't have a time frame for you. Riku's chapter is next, and suggestions PLEASE! Hehe, R&R to . Bye-byez.


	6. Black

Helloooo sixth chapter is up.I'm soooo soooo so sorry this took so long, I was on vacation for the week . To those of you who reviewed chapter 5 thank you soooo so much! Reviews make me sooo so happy:

**Deathfist, Fayepheonix, Bataru, Sora's Savior, Romanceluver95,Sephyandme, and Pheonix Tamer!**

And for those of you who wanted some Riku goodness, here it is.

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**Chapter Six:** **Black**

"Axel." Riku nodded coolly towards his companion as the tail of his blindfold dipped into his black hood.

"You sure you wanna go through all this trouble, just for one girl?" A smirk grew onto the face of the older redheaded man.

"She's everything, you know that. Even you need her to survive this." Closing his already covered eyes, Riku hoped for another vision of Kairi, something he'd been hoping for all week since he last seen her, and felt her, on the beach by the waves.

"_I'm… flying. I'm flying when I'm near her." _Riku could only find one word to describe his feeling at the moment, he didn't know why this was the feeling, but did not feel like voicing those thoughts at the moment. "So wipe that smirk off your face."

Axel did as he was told grudgingly, and took a few heavy steps towards the silver haired teen. Changing his countenance to a colder, harsher look, he snarled at his younger comrade. "Hey, I've been helping you out with this Kairi girl since the day I met you. Don't give me that attitude."

Being scolded like a child was not a thrill for Riku. He didn't like it when his mother had scolded him, and he didn't like it now. _"Don't give me that attitude. Pfft, he can't tell me what to do."_

Bringing his hand up in defeat, Riku turned away from Axel and walked towards the door, leaving the other man to his disgruntled thoughts. _"I'll deal with him later. Right now I've got to focus. Hmph, yelling at me like he has any authority over me whatsoever. What a joke."_

Grinning to himself, Riku sank into the floor surrounding himself with the swirling and biting darkness: His current form of transportation. _"Hey, it beats walking."_

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"So you decided to come and apologize? Haha?" The mouse king was chuckling now and his more serious tone seemed to be absent, along with his darker attire. He spoke to darkness, as Riku's body slowly emerged from the black.

"Yeah, yeah. So where are the other princesses?" This boy was not in the mood. As far as he was concerned, time was of the escence, and he did not have any to sit around and listen to this mouse preach, giggle, or whatever other absurd thing he was planning on doing at the moment.

"You know they scattered them among the remaining worlds." Smart move; the king had caught onto Riku's tense attitude.

"No, I wasn't aware, so nice of you to inform of that minor detail. Since when were they moved from Hollow Bastion? I thought that they were to stay there until we'd finished the research."

Mickey shuffled his feet nervously, something he'd grown accustomed to doing near Riku lately. The others didn't scare him one bit: they were purely evil. Riku, however... he wasn't so sure what his intentions were or where exactly his loyalties lay. "Well, someone gave the order for them to be released."

"That someone wouldn't happen to have been you, would it?" Annoyance and anger growing by the second, Riku voiced his opinions to the mouse without a second thought.

"I wouldn't be throwing around accusations like that. It could get you into trouble, you know." The king chuckled to himself lightly, and then made leave.

_"Well, if I have to go gather up all of the princesses again, I might as well start with her."_ A wide smile crept across Riku's handsome face, though it was different from his more recent smiles: this one was not a smirk, or a smile due to evil intentions. This was a heartfelt one, and certainly the most beautiful that had graced the young face since the last time Riku had encountered his princess. He was truly happy. The first time he'd been happy in a long time.

Watching Mickey's back as he bounced through the exit, Riku slipped off his blindfold and let it drop to the floor. Pacing around the room for a time, gathering his thoughts completely, the boy, again, smiled to himself lightly as he again began to emanate darkness.

It started from his black boots and spread quickly. It was as if it were glowing, but it was just darkness. Rising and gaining speed moving along up his body, Riku took a deep breath. _Never did like traveling, much._ Holding in the slight nausea he was feeling as the darkness creeped silently up his neck, Riku felt himself beginning to evaporate, if you could call it that.

With the noise beginning with a sickening slithering sound, the silver haired boy was gone, and the darkness slowly trickled away as well.

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Small particles of blackness began slowly appearing under the shimmering sun, which made the world seem to suddenly grow much darker. The sun shrank away from the darkness, as the boy appeared the same way he disappeared under the shade of the paopu tree.

Staring out towards the sea, feeling the cool, comforting breeze dance across his cheek, Riku turned as he felt the presence of someone else, knocking him out of his state of forgetfulness and bliss.

"Ri...Riku?"

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Hmmm... the suspense! Well, sorta, idk, heh. I'll try and update sooner than last time, I just am really busy with school and stuff right now . Well, R&R please, and thank you again to everybody who has been reading my story, you guys are the best! Toodles.


	7. Surprise

Ok, idk why, but I decided to make this chapter a lil more light and funny, just cause I need a break from writing all serious all the time, I guess. Finally, two of our characters meet up with each other. And again, I'm sorry in advance if this seems like the chars are OC for my story... does that make sense? This chapter is also kinda just cute and fluffy I guess, so kinda pointless in a way. Oo

Thank you oooooh so much for reviewing my faithful reviewers, I luv you all so much (If you're lucky :P).

Disclaimer: I forgot to do this probably the last couple (My memory is leaving me in my old age). I don't own Kingdom Hearts or any of its characters. They belong to Disney and Square Enix.

**Chapter 7: Surprise**

"R…Riku… what are you doing here?" Kairi had a look of deep surprise on her now very pale face, and Riku lowered his smile at the sight. Her face also had what Riku took as a look of slight disappointment. The boy began to feel a small tingling in his chest. He believed it to be his heart breaking from her seemingly negative reaction. It could have also been the darkness slowly draining from his love stricken body.

"I came to see you Kairi. I came here to be with you. I told you I'd never let anything happen to you, and that I'd come back for you." Riku made a small, forced laugh as he spoke the last part. "You knew I was coming back, you know I love you."

Kairi's look of udder shock had not changed as she continued to gape at the boy towering over her.

_"Why can't I say anything? Isn't this what I wanted? Didn't I want him to come back? Why am I still staring at him? Why do I have to be such an idiot? Am I drooling?"_

Finally realizing her mouth was hanging open, Kairi shut it closed with a snap and brought her eyes to the ground and her hands to her sides, wiping the small amount of spittle from the corner of her mouth discretely on the way down in embarrassment.

_"I guess I can understand why I'd be drooling. Wow. His hotness level went up. A lot. And that's saying something. He looks so much more mature, oooh the muscles, nice. Lovin the shaggy hair, too. Wow, where did that come from?"_

"Umm, Kairi? Are you okay? You've got something on your mouth." Despite the fact that Riku wasn't exactly happy with Kairi's initial reaction, he enjoyed the thought of her salivating over him a lot more than the thought of her being disappointed in his arrival. In fact, he found it rather amusing. This brought out another side of Riku; one much less dark.

"Oh, uhh, I'm fine." Kairi flashed a quick, awkward smile at Riku while turning from him slightly to wipe the rest of her face quickly. She felt her cheeks begin to burn as she turned back to face him. "I... did you say you loved me?"

Now it was Riku's turn to stumble on his words, as he was knocked out of his solemn stupor. _"Wow, how did I just come out and say that. Well that wasn't very romantic, was it? Nor the way I planned it... Argg... everything is so... messed up."_

Kairi, still waiting for the answer to her question, blushed even deeper at the thought of someone, well, Riku, being in love with her.

"Yeah Kairi, I did."

"Oh."

"I meant it"

"...Oh."

Riku could feel the smile slip from his face again at her monotonous reaction. He looked down on her beautiful red hair as his princess once again bowed her head to the ground. Feeling the sudden overwhelming need to touch her, he let his fingers make contact, and then slowly slide through her falling bangs and brush them behind her ear, causing Kairi to raise her head once again, now redder then ever.

Stunned, Kairi stood staring up at Riku's handsome face, where the beautiful smile that had graced his lips seconds before had fallen. She wanted him here, why was she trying to convince herself otherwise? Kairi bravely raised her own hand and slowly placed her small one over Riku's much larger hand, holding it to her head.

Riku felt the color immediately drain from his cheeks. He was beyond confused at the moment: What was she doing? He could not for the life of him figure out what in the world was going through Kairi's mind right now.First she's cold, now she's hot? Well, her hand does feel nice there...

"Kairi, are you... are you mad that it's me and not Sora?" Riku forced the nervous knot that had formed in his throat to slide down with a silent gulp. He continued to stare at her, taking in every beautiful feature of her eyes, her cheeks, her lips.

Kairi made to answer, but before her mouth could form the words, Riku's lips were on hers. It was a feather light kiss, with Kairi still gaping open-mouthed, though Riku didn't deepen the kiss. Slowly letting the shock wear off, Kairi loosened her muscles as she accepted him, though pulled away soon after.

"No, Riku."

Riku stared at her moist lips, forming the horrible word. _No._ Feeling his insides twisting violently and feeling that tears might just fall for the first time in years, Riku closed his eyes and turned his face away from Kairi in shame, not being able to handle this rejection.

"No, I'm not mad. You can't believe how happy I am" Kairi's blank expression had changed to that of a small smile, slowly lifting and spreading wider across her soft face. Riku opened his deep aqua eyes and turned again to face his angel. His lips began to mimic hers, as they too turned up into a bright and genuine smile.

Lifting her chin with his large hand, he tilted her again reddening face towards his, and again closed the gap between them, brushing his lips against her small pink ones.

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Ok, very, Very fluffy chapter, but some fluff once in awhile can be good. Sora's next, and I have no idea whatsoever what he should do o.O Any suggestions from reviewers for whatever they want would be great, cause I'm having a huge mind block at this point. Also, I'm almost done with my one shot, which is gunna be Sora/Kairi, but it's kinda gunna bash Sora a lot >. Sorry to Sora fans in advance. :( Anyway, R&R please!


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